Seeing an England team playing in a final of a major tournament seems to be a regular echo over the last few months, and it was the Under 17's turn to make their own history after they WON the under 17's World Cup in India yesterday.
England beat Spain 5 -2 in the final, ironically the same team that beat them in the Under 17's European Championships back in May. After impressing throughout the tournament, which included 2 4-0 wins in the group stage against Iraq and Mexico, it was the 4-1 win against the USA and a 3-1 win against Brazil which really made the nation take notice in the knock out stages. Rhian Brewster, who scored back to back hat tricks in the knock out stages took a lot of the headlines after he took home the golden boot with 8 goals. The young forward; who left Chelsea at the age of 14 to join Liverpool spoke out about how a prep talk by his dad on the phone prompted the sudden bucket load of goals.
After the success of the under 20's, 21's and under 18's the future looks bright for England at international level after a string of frustrating senior team major tournament performances. It does beg the question, will the foreign player dominated Premier League affect these young players development and chances to break into the first teams?
Former England midfielder and multiple trophy winner Frank Lampard sent a powerful message to the players, simply saying " well done, but the hard work starts now!".
It is certainly a year to look back on in pride for the English FA, and a winning mentality that we hope continues until next Summer in Russia!
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